Two Mississippi men are facing federal charges after allegedly using counterfeit money to purchase high-end watches and jewelry from a business in Pineville, North Carolina.
Robert Lewis Elliott III, 36, and Devin Alonzo Elliott, 30, of Okolona, Mississippi, have been charged with conspiracy to pass counterfeit obligations and passing counterfeit obligations, according to a press release from the office of Russ Ferguson, United States Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.
The criminal indictment was filed in August and unsealed on September 25, following the defendants’ court appearances.
According to the indictment, the two men went from Mississippi to North Carolina in June and entered Solitaire Jewelry at the Carolina Place Mall on June 26.
They allegedly told an employee that they planned to acquire $300,000 in watches and jewels. They left a $1,000 cash deposit and stated that they would return the following day to complete the sale.
The soldiers did return the next day, on June 27.
According to the indictment, Robert allegedly gave the employee $10,000 (a stack of actual $100 bills) to count.
The bills were tallied electronically and checked with a counterfeit detecting pen, according to the announcement.
Then, according to the indictment, Robert utilized sleight-of-hand to exchange genuine notes for a stack of counterfeit bills, which he placed in the store’s safe as payment.
Robert used the same stack of genuine bills repeatedly until all of the phony money was in the safe.
When the employee finished calculating the money, he asked Robert for his identification to finalize the transaction.
Robert allegedly stated that he needed to go to his car to collect his ID and money to purchase additional items.
According to the announcement, the two guys then exited the business and fled with watches and jewels worth $300,000 in total.
The following items were stolen: a Patek Philippe diamond watch ($90,000), an Audemars Piguet watch ($48,000), a Cartier watch ($25,000), four Rolex watches ($76,300 total), a rose gold Cuban link chain ($32,000), a gold bracelet ($17,500), a bangle bracelet ($8,200), diamond earrings ($1,000), and 24-karat gold earrings ($2,000).
Robert and Devin were freed on bond, according to the release.
If convicted, they could face five years in jail for conspiracy to pass counterfeit obligations and 20 years in prison for passing counterfeit obligations.
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